How To Build a Better Smoothie

Whether you’re new to smoothies or an experienced blender, this post will teach you how to build a better smoothie to add more nutrition, delicious flavor and added sustenance to your breakfast game.

There’s no denying that when I jumped on the smoothie train, I jumped on hard. For the longest time I couldn’t understand why people were obsessed with them, but that’s because I was still stuck in the sugary-fruit-juice + yogurt blend you’ll find at your local smoothie chain.

It took me years to understand how to build a BETTER smoothie. One made from quality ingredients that together can make a quick and easy meal-in-one and not just a sugar-filled “meal replacement” that leaves you hungrier an hour later.

Now I am a self-declared smoothie queen. I fly this flag loud and proud and am the first person to tell anyone looking to start eating healthier to begin their day with a healthy smoothie.

Today I wanted to share some of my favorite smoothie recipes with you, but also teach and empower you to build your own smoothie creations. Once you know how to build one, the combinations are endless and actually can be quite fun.

So what’s the magic secret to building a better smoothie? Let’s begin:

It’s important to have a good balance of macro-nutrients. Fruit is great, but you need fat and protein to make your smoothie long-lasting. My go-to protein powder these days is Vega One in French Vanilla. I love that it has 20 grams of protein, probiotics and a full serving of veggies included in its blend.

Nut butter is my fat of choice, but I’ll take any excuse to add peanut or almond butter. This helps to prevent a blood sugar crash and keep you full all morning long.

I also am a huge advocate for adding some veggies to your smoothie. Spinach, kale, beets, I PROMISE you won’t taste them! It’s by far the easiest way to get your veggies in without having to think twice about it.

And then you need a liquid base to blend everything up. A good rule of thumb is that a thicker smoothie will need about a 1/2 cup of liquid and a thinner one will need closer to a cup. I always go for Silk Unsweetened Almond Milk. It adds the milky thickness that I crave without the dairy. Plus it has zero added sugar and 30% more calcium than regular dairy milk.

Here’s How To Make A Better Smoothie:

-1 cup of fruit or fiber of some sort (oats are a great smoothie addition!)-1 scoop of Vega One Nutritional Shake-1-2 cups of greens (or other veggie)-1 tbsp of fat (nut butter, coconut oil or avocado are great!)-1/2-1 cup of Silk almond milk (or other Silk non-dairy beverage)

And for those of you needing some smoothie inspiration, here are a few flavor combos I think you’ll love!

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15 Comments

Couldn’t be more beautiful! I guess you weren’t able to make it to the Toronto event. Would have been so wonderful to meet you in person. I almost have to make another trip out to Toronto just to make that happen 🙂

Grace

September 13, 2016 at 12:27 pm

Hi. These smoothie recipes all sound fantastic! I used to us Vega all the time, love their products. I’ve recently, and for no real reason, have decided to lean away from using any powders or supplements. I miss drinking smoothies though. Do you have any suggestions or recipes, for smoothies that do not include protein powder? Thanks.

One of my greatest smoothie success stories was when I got Boyfriend to take a sip of my green smoothie and he liked it and drank a whole glass. 🙂 I introduced smoothies into Boyfriend’s life, now he is the one who usually makes them for us in the morning, though he prefers to have them rather fruit than veggie based (bananas, peaches).

I just recently started adding nutbutter, seeds, protein powder, and they make all the difference for keeping me full and sated until lunch.